Are foreigners rejoicing while Japanese grieve? Big problems created by the weak Yen

The value of the Japanese yen has been declining significantly against the US dollar. The so-called “weak yen” situation has brought about a period of great change in the Japanese economy.

Business in Japan has rapidly grown to 7 trillion yen
The weak yen is a very welcome situation for foreigners who visit Japan for pleasure. Japanese goods that used to cost 100 USD until last year now cost less than 70 USD.

Hotel room prices are also dropping when converted to USD as well, so it is truly a great opportunity to visit Japan. Restaurants are also visited by many foreigners and prices are higher, but this does not affect them much because the value of the Japanese yen is declining.

Are the Japanese in the depths of grief?
Japanese people earn money in Japanese yen, and salaries are not rising. If prices soar in this scenario, it is only natural that life becomes more difficult.

In Japan, many industries, including food, are not fully developed domestically, and if the ones that rely on imports rise in price, it follows that various products will become more expensive.

In the past, the yen was weaker than it is now, but there was a time when this situation was welcome because many industries completed work domestically. However, the current scenario in Japan has already changed and the country is in a very difficult situation.

Labor shortages
In Japan, people from Southeast Asia come to Japan to work as technical interns and in other ways. Even though the wages they are paid do not change, less and less people want to come and work in Japan because the value of the money they send back to their home country decreases.

Therefore, the labor force cannot be secured without raising salaries, so this is another issue that is weakening the Japanese economy.

Can’t people even travel?
The number of foreign tourists is increasing dramatically, and they are willing to stay in hotels with high room charges. This situation makes it impossible for hotels to offer rooms to Japanese tourists at a lower price.

Japanese schools have a culture of school excursions, which all students take when they are in their second year of junior high school or second year of high school. Although it is an important event for all students to travel and make memories together, there has been an increase in the number of students who are not able to afford to go on these trips.

An increasing number of restaurants and hotels are responding by differentiating their prices for foreigners from those for Japanese, but there are limits to this in today’s Japan, which relies on overseas suppliers and labor. As a result, the yen’s depreciation hasn’t lessened despite the government’s interventions.

So, when will the Japanese economy recover?

ABE KENGO

• Japan
• japo